The Communication Secretary also reiterated the
government’s call for Filipinos working in Libya to undergo voluntary
repatriation. Early this month, the DFA put Libya in Alert Level 3 due to the
unrest brought by an ongoing civil war.

An estimated 100,000 scholars will be affected
as Congress no longer include PDAF in the 2014 national budget.

Formerly, each House of Representative members
and Senators receive PDAF in their respective annual budget for their “hard and
soft projects.” Included in the “soft” projects are the scholarship programs
and medical assistance.